Good price for well reviewed speakers
10% discount applies in cart, expires midnight tonight per promo material.
Best historical price, $195 cheaper than current Amazon price and the recent deal.
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/760719
KEF LS50 Meta Bookshelf Speaker Pair $1755 Delivered @ Melbourne Hifi
700
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Nice spot and post, fab price
$1950 now?
10% discount applies in cart, expires midnight tonight per promo material.
Phenomenal speaker!
I kinda wish there was more 2.0 and 2.1 options under the 1K mark. :(
Hit up gumtree / fb market place.
2.1 options under the 1K mark. :(
Edifier S351DB seems like a popular choice here. https://www.ozbargain.com.au/product/edifier-s351db
Edit: more so the more expensive S360DB https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/721453
A lot of bookshelf speakers will slide comfortably under $1k. Budget brands like Q Acoustics and Cambridge have good stuff for under $500, and even more expensive brands like Focal can be had for less than a grand if you shop around. Add a $100 class d amp and you're laughing.
Powered monitors can also be a great option.
Adding a sub does drive up cost, but subs also tend to be heavily discounted on secondhand platforms as they're bulky.
There are a lot of good bookshelf speakers for cheaper. Check out the cheapaudioman on YouTube, and audiosciencereview.com ( https://audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/list-… )
I kinda wish there was more 2.0 and 2.1 options under the 1K mark. :(
Your wish is granted : https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/303921176486
I got Dynaudio bookshelves for $1k flat, 2nd hand in immaculate condition.
You have much to learn, grasshopper.
That was harsh. Deep Harsh against Harsh Deep.
I've got a pair of LS50 wireless as my PC desktop speakers. Completely overkill but nice!
Also have a pair of LS50w and they’ve broken twice already. Thankfully they were under warranty both times but now im outside the warranty period so everytime I turn them on, I get anxious whether it’s gonna break on me again!
Also have a pair of LS50w and they’ve broken twice already.
I read on Audiosciencereview that it is a common issue. Not only that but it seems like the problem is a failure of the PCB that handles the wireless signal/other inputs and Kef designed it so if one part fails, the speaker refuses to turn on and function properly (it goes into kind of like a "limp" protect mode).
So every time it happens to someone the requirement is for it to be sent back to Kef for repair.@harshbdmmaster718: Doesn't have to be sent back to KEF; they have authorised repairers around Australia.
@zonfierre: Yeah just sharing what the people in the ASR thread were saying (globally). Australia has consumer law on top of warranty so things are probably different. Probably cost Kef less to outsource repairs to third parties rather than set up their own repair centre in Australia.
As illusion said they already got 2 replacements, while most people in other regions were stuck with paying to ship the heavy speakers back to Kef.
They listen to them.
Much like with almost everything, speakers come in all different price brackets and quality.
KEF LS50 are not at the high end at all. Edifier are the common choice at around $200, but you can get bookshelves for much much more. The difference comes down to sound. Detail, clarity, separation, sound stage, etc.
i knew, i will be negged, thats why i said i am curious. but thats ok, shows people get offened so easily.
mate… why do people buy a $200k Maserati when a $20k Kia goes just as 'good'
why do people buy a $2,000 iphone pro max when a $200 a22 is nowhere near as 'good'
same shit
Nobody is offended. It’s just a dumb question.
yeah we fully well know who's butthurt… its obvoious
@tonyjzx: yeah I am wondering why can't we just silently ignore the noob question & move on or just answer it like a grown-up would do to a child? What's with the barrage of neg votes - peer pressure, anti-troll instincts or just plain intolerance towards uncomfortable facts!
@DAT: It's all about how it's phrased… Asking:
Hey just wondering what makes these speakers worth the $2k asking price over the cheaper ones?
Is less confronting than:
why not just get something around $200. isn't too much for just 1 pair!!!!
Which is barely a question, the exclamation marks make it sound like a declaration more than anything.
isn't too much for just 1 pair!!!!
Same as asking why would someone spend $1300 on a phone
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/13374249/redirWhy buy a $10k Rolex when a $30 Casio will do the same job?
To be fair, this is also a legitimate question.
@sevendollarsfifty: High quality finishing, movement, case, design and likely will last a lot longer. It’s up to individual whether that is worth the money. Some will say yes. Some will say no. Some people will never think of dropping more than $30 on a watch but are happy to spend $2000 on a phone when there are $1000 phones that do the same thing. Different priorities. In parts of Europe they would never spend $1m on a house but in Aus we love to spend on house
@illusion99: Random observation, Rolex can also be used as currency in not so friendly crisis situations especially third world countries.
@BlueGlowOne: That is correct. In fact that is why spies wear luxury watches. To use as currency in case things go south and they need to access to $$
@BlueGlowOne: Good luck convincing anyone in a "not so friendly crisis situation" that your Rolex is not a fake. Cash is king.
@BlueGlowOne: You've confirmed this yourself in how many third world countries, or is this from reading the interwebs?
You'd have to be all sorts of reckless to be wearing expensive jewellery through many third world countries, and if you could carry a flashy watch you'd be better served carrying a discreet wad of USD, which doesn't loose a huge chunk of value when you're trying to turn it into… cash.
Why fly a kite when you can pop a pill?
Why hire an escort when you can use a fleshlight
@Harsh Deep you spent $1371 on a phone but you only budget $200 for your speakers ?
WTF.
got $2700 worth stuff as well, missing the point mate.
Can someone care to explain though? Everyone is making comparisons Maserati vs Kia, Rolex vs Casio. But no one is actually answering the question. I know sound quality can be subjective, but why do these speakers have a premium compared to others? Is it premium build quality? Features? Connectivity?
End of the day its just sound quality what you pay for and trust me this price is not even expensive for that realm of possibility. It’s not something that can be explained by a comment or word of mouth, somethings need to be experienced.
Its not as easy as explaining Full HD to 4K in quality
But if i had to put in words, its sound stage and imaging.
The feeling you get closing your eyes and being able to feel the band in the room, or even a room/atmosphere that the producer and band have created for that specific track. It takes appreciating the art form to the proper level. This level cant be achieved with shitty speakers everyday speakers most normal individuals are use to, like portable bluetooth speakers or your google home. All the sounds are all muddled together and you can barely distinguish certain instruments and sounds
@jujudon you got me, thank god there is someone who got brain.
love to see some crackheads loosing their shit heads, give me more negs, m the new jv . like i said i was curious, wanted to know. but its ok, some but heads got offended, wont understand between objecting something and asking.
Comments get negged when people disagree with them.
They disagreed with you saying 2 grand was too much for 1 pair, as you can get bookshelves for $200.
Nobody got “offended”. Well… you did… but the people who negged your original comment didn’t.
n.mhjim
Turn it up
Deflation is truly on it’s way.
This or 1 ETH ???
wow pay $2000 to get 2.0 sound
Lol music doesn’t come in anything beyond that. These are made specifically for that
Agreed. If you want to listen to music, what are you looking for beyond stereo recording… maybe "3.0 sound"?
I only have 2.0 ears, how about you?
That's almost half why my entire sound system cost, for two dinky little bookshelf speakers!
I'm sorry you have such a poor quality sound system.
;)
Guys I think we need to lower expectations for how majority of mainstream consumers think.
Funnily enough I think Kef marketing with their "Lifestyle speaker" style website actually targets mainstream consumers and is trying to trick them into buying their expensive speakers but anyway.
Most people have very little idea about audio and speakers and such. Hell I have seen so many videos on youtube where the user bought a 5.1/7.1 system, and he sets all the speakers on top of each other like tetris and puts the receiver on top lol 🤣. That's what most mainstream consumers are like. They have no idea about HiFi or Dolby standards. They just unbox stack and enjoy life.
Am I into HiFi? No. Would I spend this much on speakers? No. But some people have a better understanding of it so they spend more, it helps that they can also afford it.
But that doesn't mean we should punch down on mainstream consumers who have no idea. We should just simply say this product probably isn't for you.they could just not post i guess
i mean is that too hard?
i dont have a cat so i dont post when its about cat food or cat litter… and yet some people have to insert themselves into something they have no interest in and some have to defend that practise…
Yeah but a small inconvenience. It's quite clear from their first comment they don't understand the technical side of things. Most of them are coming from a place of ignorance and are harmless.
You could also say the same thing about responding to them, is reading and ignoring those comments too hard?
I don't have a cat either but I made a joke comment making fun of the ozbargain post for an expensive cat toilet. It was just having a bit of fun and maybe making someone laugh. Harmless really.
my mistake, in future i will be more sensitive to those differently abled..
@tonyjzx: My main point is it's not a big deal to begin with. If you engage with them and start something, then you are just making it a big deal for yourself.
I think if you really thought about it you would not bother engaging and prefer to use that time to respond to a different comment.Edit: Also I am not calling those users "dumb". We are all ignorant about at least one thing right?
There's some pretty useless posts here from some… Happens every high end audio thread.
'wow pay $2000 to get 2.0 sound'
'Meh, I am going to wait for 90% off sale.'
'That's almost half why my entire sound system cost, for two dinky little bookshelf speakers!'
Just to pick out a few… That's just useless trolling.
That's just useless trolling.
Yeah could be. But either way ignorance or trolling, it's not worth trying to argue otherwise right? It's clear they don't have much of an understanding before writing that so most will not bother responding to them.
Happens every high end audio thread.
I think it can happen in any thread 🙂. Hell I was even ignorant once about watches on a $650 Seiko Quartz watch post saying "shouldn't the accuracy spec from an expensive Seiko be better than Casio/G-shock's Quartz standard of +/- 15 seconds per month, e.g. I expected to see +/- 10 seconds per month" I thought such an expensive watch deserved a better value in just one spec. Got downvoted into oblivion on that one lol.
If you stack your speakers, it multiplies the bass. Duh.
Just noticed my typo. I meant "stacks all the speakers on top of each other". Doh.
Then don't reply with ignorant comments, easy.
Not at you obviously lol
I've tried demoing these a couple of times, once in a KEF-specific showroom environment.
I just couldn't understand the fuss over them. They sounded metallic, piercing, overall quite unpleasant to listen to.
On the positive side, they certainly look nice.
TBF there's the sound signature of most KEF speakers though? They generally lean to bright sounding signatures
I have q350, they are not overly bright, I think they are fantastic and so do most reviewers and users
Funny coz a review on avs forums supports Q series being less bright, or less detailed? than the LS
Thread title “ls50 vs q150 audition”
https://www.avsforum.com/threads/ls50-vs-q150-audition.29563…I am not familiar with the LSs myself but when I swapped from using 2x Q150s (hooked to AV amp) to the inbuilt TV speakers, my wife, who isn’t specifically into hifi, reacted with a look of disgust and an impromptu audible ‘errggh’.
I got Q350 and Q150
They are sort of like bargain LS50
I wouldn't say that. Kef are very natural to me.
LS Series, all of them, are brighter in general, but I wouldn't say the brand as a whole is.
Could be- I've not paid much attention to Kef, and my speaker experience is limited. I'd thought maybe it was perhaps some limitation of the wide band driver- my only other experience with the wide band drivers has been extremely underwhelming and with a similar sound signature.
They were so bright that it was an instant dislike, a real "wtf is this gear, is something wrong" moment.
Why is everything named or have the term meta in it now? It irks me so much for some reason.
Because dumb people love buzzwords.
It's the new "i".
Can't wait for BMW's Meta8.
I love this comment because your username is actually meta! :)
Because KEF have used metamaterials in their speakers for a few years now, which are a real thing:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MetamaterialAnd it distinguishes it from the version of the LS50s before that didn't use metamaterials
In this case, it’s because this revision uses “metamaterial absorption technology”.
Has anyone gone to/from discrete amp with passive speakers and these? What were the pros and cons?
Is q150 / 350 a reasonable comparison?
ICYMI this deal is for the passive version (not the LS50 Wireless)
I picked these because I use them with both a dedicated amp for music + via my receiver as part of 5.1 for movies/games
Ah yes, you’re right!
Do you run your receiver preouts into the dedicated amp?
This is a set up I’ve been considering, so forgive the stupid question please:
Does preout front channels mean you need to control the volume of the front speakers manually on your amp? Or can the receiver volume control keep everything in sync?
The second one.
Harks back to the classic discrete device setup, where everything is its own box, or device. These are my understanding of the terms:
A pre amp, is basically circuit that takes one or more audio signals from all your audio sources cd, record players etc, and the pre-amp puts it thru the input selection switches, volume control. Tone controls, balance, and all the basic audio controls. It’s a pre amp coz it’s the control section , but it outputs a signal that has yet to be amplified. Signal coming out should be unamplified analog.
Power amplifier is simple, it just amplifies. And pure power amplifiers, only have 1 input and 1 speaker output (per channel). Ie my power amp has 5 connections. Power, 2x RCA plugs, 2 speaker posts.
“Integrated amplifier” is basically those two combined.
“Receiver” is called that coz it includes a radio tuner
The better integrated amps and receivers have pre outs and ‘main in’ so you can use the pre/power sections separately
So , pre out from receiver will have the volume levels in sync with the volume control.
If that pre out goes to a power amplifier , ie one without any input switches etc, then you can adjust the settings in the receiver to balance it all, and just use the volume control
If the pre out goes to an ‘integrated amplifier’, then either go direct to main in , if it has it (tho u will be basically skipping and disabling the pre-amp section), or go into one of the inputs ie aux/tuner, but then you will have 2 volume controls. You can let the receiver control the volume, you’ll need to set the volume knob on the integrated amp to a specific level every time, to keep it balanced. With any other speakers that are using the AV receiver’s internal amp
Hope that makes sense and/or I haven’t over explained it (you prob knew most/all of that)
I jumped from the Q100 to the LS50 Meta and it was an immediately noticeable upgrade, driven by a Peachtree Nova 65 Amplifier for near field listening.
Excellent price!
I paid RRP for them in 2021 during lockdown, when there were just no sales. Love them.
I use Newmann KH120 for near field and sounds good to me, does KEF LS50 do much better job?
If you prefer making music, no.
If you prefer listening, yes.
kefe
I prefer my q350 to this as audio quality wise they're on par (at least to my ears), but 350 is much easier to drive.
And much more affordable at around $700?
Apart from the price difference, this or the KEF R3 for nearfield listening?
I don’t think any of KEFs are for nearfield
LSX for closer
Meh, I am going to wait for 90% off sale.
Great price!